Andrew Waite

Albany

Columnist at The Daily Gazette

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Articles

Northeast states, communities push back after Trump administration releases 'sanctuary jurisdictions' list

4 weeks ago | wamc.org | Andrew Waite

The Trump administration has released a list of states and local governments that it says are "self-identified" sanctuary jurisdictions. The list published on Friday by the Department of Homeland Security follows an executive order from President Trump. Several states, including New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Connecticut are on the list — though state leaders, including Governor Ned Lamont of Connecticut, say the White House has "falsely labeled" the state.
Videos provide more detail of Monday morning shooting in Gloversville

Jul 10, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

As Gloversville police continue to investigate a Monday shooting, they have released two videos containing more detail of the July 8 incident. One video taken from a porch near the shooting, which occurred just after 12:30 a.m. in the area of 189 Spring St., contains audio of four gunshots. Another video shows a suspect in a light-colored shirt running down the street. Shots fired on Spring Street in Gloversville. Police reported no injuries in the shooting.
Capital Region, Mohawk Vallery at risk of flooding, high winds as Beryl arrives

Jul 10, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

As the storm Beryl moves northeast, the greater Mohawk Valley should brace for severe weather, including possible flooding and damaging winds beginning as early as Wednesday afternoon, according to an advisory shared by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. In addition, an isolated tornado is possible, according to the National Weather Service’s Albany office, with a tornado warning in effect through 9 p.m. Wednesday in several counties, including Fulton, Montgomery, Saratoga and Schenectady.
Beryl expected to bring heavy rainfall to Capital Region Wednesday

Jul 9, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

CAPITAL REGION — Heavy rain carrying risk of flash flooding is expected to arrive in the region Wednesday afternoon and stick around through about midnight Thursday as the deadly storm Beryl moves northeast, according to the National Weather Service. Rainfall totals could top five inches in Capital Region communities hit repeatedly by passing storm cells. But on average, the region should expect between two and three inches of rain, said Bob Oravec, a forecaster with the National Weather Service.
Waite: Goodbye, Gazette

Jul 8, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

For the second time in my career, I’m saying goodbye to local journalism. The first time came more than a decade ago when I was a reporter in suburban Washington, D.C., for a chain of weeklies owned by The Washington Post Company. A lot went into that decision, but the papers’ financial struggles were central to my calculus.
Waite: Lowering speed limit would send strong signal to Schenectady drivers

Jun 29, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite |Tyler A. McNeil

The driver had a green light. The driver who struck Kathy Fitzmaurice on Aug. 11, 2023, while Fitzmaurice was in a crosswalk in downtown Schenectady during her usual 6 a.m. stroll, had a green light. The driver who struck Fitzmaurice on her birthday, as she was looking forward to finishing up a few work tasks as a budget analyst for New York State before taking a rare week of vacation to tend to her garden and paddleboard on the Mohawk, had a green light.
Waite: What could be more American than no fireworks on July 4?

Jun 26, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

This may seem un-American, but what if we didn’t set off fireworks every July 4? What if a week from Thursday, we didn’t plan to gather in parks and on plazas, along riverbanks and atop picnic blankets to stare up at the dazzling, booming pyrotechnics reminding us of the “bombs bursting in air”? What if, instead, we switched to a notably similar but distinctly different kind of show to carry on the tradition?
Waite: New York should consider open primaries

Jun 25, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

On this Primary Day in New York, about a quarter of the state’s registered voters will not be eligible to participate. It’s nothing new, of course. New York is one of 14 states in which at least one party conducts closed primaries, which requires enrolling as a member of a political party to take part in the primary. But that effectively disenfranchises the state’s more than 3 million unaffiliated voters during every primary.
Waite: Niskayuna family shares ins and outs of rescinded school acceptance

Jun 21, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

On April 9, the Darling family in Niskayuna received a letter from the principal of Tech Valley High School in Albany. It was good news. In the letter reviewed by The Daily Gazette, Principal Amy Hawrylchak informed John and Carrie Darling that one of their twin 14-year-old sons had been granted admission through the enrollment lottery for the 2024/2025 school year. “We are excited to welcome you to the TVHS family,” Hawrylchak wrote. The Darlings were elated.
Waite: Are we finally trending away from social media?

Jun 20, 2024 | dailygazette.com | Andrew Waite

When Elon Musk purchased Twitter for $44 billion in 2022, I was hopeful. No, I didn’t harbor any illusions that the eccentric billionaire mogul might save the social media platform. In fact, I longed for the opposite. I hoped that the SpaceX and Tesla founder’s impulsiveness and quirkiness – and his decision to lay off thousands of Twitter employees – would drive the social media platform into the ground. To me, Musk’s rebrand of the site as “X” seemed to signify its impending cancellation.